The moon is a
great illusionist. Rising just above the horizon, it appears larger than it
actually is, much larger than when it’s overhead (ask James about this).
Another
illusionist, David Copperfield, was declared a living legend by the U. S.
Library of Congress. He’s famous for disappearing the Statue of Liberty
(Abracadabra!)
Some may not
realize that the magic begins long before the statue disappears or before
audience members disappear and re-appear somewhere else.
There is planning
and anticipation, a build up to that memorable moment.
The colon is also
a magician.
All that precedes
it -- the planning, the anticipation, the buildup -- leads to the inevitable or
sometimes surprising conclusion.
Now, it’s true
that talk of the colon (of the English variety) is often accompanied by a yawn,
a “Ho hum.” But it is geared for many more exciting things than heralding a
list (though lists can be exciting), hailing the recipient of a letter or
refereeing hours and minutes.
He vied for
these things: her attention, her honour, her baked goods, her future.
A sentence builds
to what the colon introduces.
He went too
far, the die was cast, the verdict rendered: Guilty!
The colon lends
importance to what follows it: all eyes here.
It may introduce
words that carry great import, or a query or conclusion.
She heard his
Oxfords following her, and she spun around, but there was no one: How could he
be invisible?
House Style may
call for a capital when a question follows.
The colon lends
dramatic punch to a sentence.
The man packed
a satchel, packed a lunch and packed it in because he wasn’t coming back.
The man packed
a satchel, packed a lunch and packed it in: he wasn’t coming back.
All that goes
before is to prepare us for what follows: he wasn’t coming back.
“:” is the
invisible spotlight, the “Abracadabra!” of the sentence that is quickly and
appropriately forgotten in the words that follow it; after all, who was
watching Copperfield when the Statue of Liberty disappeared?
The colon may
summarize what has gone before.
The magician’s
eyes pierced the audience, his voice hypnotic, his hands mesmerizing: we were
his captives.
Or, it may be used
to form an impression from the sum of our observations.
Beads of
perspiration glistened on her forehead and her fingers trembled ever so
slightly as she swept away the wayward lock shrouding her vision: she was
nervous.
Two cautions:
First, a colon
weakens surrounding punctuation.
She would not
stop searching: invisible or not, she would find him.
She would not
stop searching. Invisible or not, she would find him.
Sometimes a
sentence needs a full stop, a period.
Second, when
everything seems important, nothing is.
The colon should
be used creatively and judiciously.
The colon makes a
grand appearance on the front cover of The Elements of Style, by Strunk and White, as well as appearing
on the inside of this basic guide to grammar and punctuation.
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